Morphology development of main‐chain liquid crystalline polymer fibers during solvent evaporation |
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| Authors: | Pratyush Dayal Andrew J Guenthner Thein Kyu |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Polymer Engineering, University of Akron, Ohio 44325;2. Chemistry and Materials Division, Naval Air Warfare Center, Administration Circle, China Lake, California 93555;3. Department of Polymer Engineering, University of Akron, Ohio 44325Department of Polymer Engineering, University of Akron, Ohio 44325 |
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| Abstract: | A nonequilibrium thermodynamic approach has been developed for describing the emergence of fiber morphologies from a liquid crystalline polymer solution undergoing solvent evaporation, including fibrillar structures, concentric rings, and spiral structures. We utilized Matsuyama–Kato free energy for main‐chain liquid crystalline polymer (MCLCP) solutions, which is an extension of Maier–Saupe theory for nematic ordering and incorporates a chain‐stiffening, combined with Flory‐Huggins free energy of mixing. Temporal evolution of the concentration and nematic order parameters pertaining to the above free energy density of liquid crystalline polymer solution was simulated in the context of time‐dependent Ginzburg–Landau theory coupled with the solvent evaporation rate equation under the quasi‐steady state assumption. The emerged morphological patterns are discussed in relation to the phase diagram of the MCLCP solution and the rate of solvent evaporation. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 429–435, 2007 |
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| Keywords: | LCP morphology phase behavior structure modeling |
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